Practicing Organization Development, 5th Edition

CHAPTER TENPost Launch: Evaluating Transformation and Change

Steven H. Cady and Jennifer R. Steele Viti

Organization Development and Change (OD&C) is an indispensable component of contemporary business strategy focusing on improving organizational effectiveness and promoting employee well-being. Organizational change is inevitable in modern business environments, as organizations must continually adapt to evolving market conditions, technological advancements, and internal performance improvements. As organizations shift toward evidence-based solutions, there is an increased emphasis on ensuring that change interventions are well-designed and supported by objective evaluation (Cady et al. 2018). Evaluating the effectiveness of these changes is crucial for understanding their impact and guiding future initiatives. Despite its importance, the evaluation of planned change interventions often remains ambiguous, posing significant challenges in assessing their true impact.

As organizations evolve in a rapidly changing global and digital era, leaders are exerting increasing pressure to see the value added by interventions. Evaluation in an organizational setting examines the impact of an intervention—an intentional action taken to create positive change in a system. These interventions can be proactive or reactive and come in various forms, including training sessions, social programs, policy creation, strategic planning, organizational redesign, technology implementation, and more. ...